Whistle or horn.



E. W. SGHURMAN.

WHISTLE 0R HORN.

APPLIOATION FILED Amma, 1910.

Patented Jan. 20,1914.

ZU d .7 eass g3 @n-CMM COLUMBIA Pumas UNITED STATES PATENT FTC,

ELIAS W. SCI-IURMAN, OE EVERETT, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR, BY DIR-ECT AND MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO THE RANDALL-FAICHNEY COMFANY, OF BOSTON, MAS- SACI-IUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF MASSACHUSETTS.

WHISTLE OR HORN.

To all whom zi may concern.'

Be it. lnown that I, ELIAS WV. SCHURMAN, of Everett, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in IVhistles or Horns, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to whistles or horns adapted to be employed in connection with motor vehicles or cars, and to be sounded by the exhaust from the motor. In other words the invention relates to a horn adapted to be connected with the exhaust pipe from which a fairly continuous blast of exhaust working fluid is discharged, so that a sound may be produced by the action of said blast on the horn.

The Object of my invention is to provide an improved construction of horn by virtue of which the same may be caused to sound only at the desired times and may be silentat all other times.

I carry the invention into practical effect by providing a. hollow resonant body, and by mounting the same in such manner that it is movable and may be placed either in a position to have sound vibrations induced by the blast from the mot-or, or to be moved entirely out of the path of the blast, whereby it may remain absolutely silent so far as its own note is concerned.

In the accompanying drawings and the following specification I have illustrated and described a form of horn adapted to be attached to a pipe from which a gaseous blast is discharged, and having a resonant hollow body or chamber formed with an opening in its side movable bodily with re` spect to the Pipe into different positions, one of which causes the opening to be placed with relation to the blast issuing from the pipe in such a way that the air or gas contained in the resonant body is set into soundproducing vibrations, while in other positions the opening is so far displaced from the blast that no sound vibrations are set up therein.

The drawings illustrate one form in which the invention may be embodied and one mode in which it may be used, but this construction is not the only possible one, and I desire it to be clearly understood that the essential features of the invention may be Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed April 13, 1910.

Patented Jan. 20, 1914:.

Serial No. 555,220.

embodied in many other and specifically different forms of construction.

In the drawings, Figure 1 represents a side elevation of the preferred embodiment of my invention. Fig. 2 represents a longitudinal sect-ion of the same, illustrating also in `dotted lines the position of the resonator when inoperative. Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing the blast pipe in section and the resonator in elevation. Fig. 4 is an under plan View.

Referring to the drawings a represents a pipe or tube section adapted to be secured to the pipe from which the exhaust gases of an internal combustion engine are discharged, and adapted also to be attached to any pipe from which steam, air, gas or any other gaseous fluid may be discharged under sufficientpressure for the purpose. This pipe section may be constructed in any Inanner and provided with any means of attacln ment to the pipe `or tube from which the supply or blast of fluid for operating the horn is obtained. A convenient attaching means which is here illust-rated is a sleeve o slotted at each end and having wings c at one end and wings (l at the other, through which are passed clamping bolts e and f respectively for frictionally securing the sleeve on the tube t and supply pipe respectively.

The tube or pipe a may be any desired form, with the single exception thatits discharge end a must be so formed as to coact properly with the hollow resonant body or chamber hereinafter described. As a result of experimentation, I have found that the most satisfactory results are obtained when the end a is rectangular.

The hollow resonant chamber or body is represented by g and is movably secured to the tube a at the discharge end a thereof. This resonant chamber has an approximately 'cylindrical form with curved side walls g and substantially dat end walls g2. At one part of its periphery the side walls of the resonant body are distorted from a truly cylindrical form, so as to make an approximately rectangular corner 7L. At one side of the rectangular corner an opening z' is formed in the side Wall of the resonant member, while at the adjacent side of the corner the portion j of the side wall extends nearly up to the corner, but terminates a slight distance short thereof. The resonant member is mounted adjacent to the tube a and preferably is supported thereby in such manner that it may move bodily in relation thereto. I prefer to support this member pivotally by means of a pivot pin c passing through overlapping lugs Z and m on the resonant member and tube respectively, although this particular mode of attachment is not essential. The parts may be connected in any way which permits movement of the resonant member relatively to the tube into substantially the positions hereinafter described. In one position of the resonant member, which is the position necessary for the production of sound, and is illustrated in Fig. 1, the side wall y' of the resonant member extends across the end of the tube'a, leaving between its end and the lower wall a2 of the tube, a narrow slit or nozzle n through which the blast from the tube is constrained to pass. The edges of the opening z' then lie in substantially the same plane with the wall i2 of the tube, and the blast issuing from the nozzle n crosses this opening and strikes the edge o of the side wall um at the end of the opening. The blast thus crossing the opening sets up sound vibrations in the body of air contained in the resonant member, and causes a musical note to be emitted. As long as the resonant member is retained in the position illustrated in Fig. l and in full lines in Fig. Q the horn continues to sound. In order to cause cessation of the sound the resonant member is removed from the position last described into one corresponding more or less closely with that illustrated in dotted lines in Fig. 2. In thus moving it swings about the pivot k carrying the wall j away from the tube a, leaving the latter unobstructed, and carrying the opening z' entirely out of the path of the blast. When moved into this position the horn becomes absolutely silent and continues thus until the resonant member is returned to the position shown in Fig. l.

For moving the resonant member I prefer to employ automatic constantly-acting means for placing and holding the resonant member in its inoperative position, and means controlled by the operator for bringing the resonant member into its sound-producing position. One embodiment of such means consists of a spring p connected at its opposite ends to the tube and resonant member respectively, conveniently to lugs or eyes o and r on said members, so that it exerts its pull with a' constant tendency to bring the resonant member into the position shown by clot-ted lines in Fig. 2. For bringing the resonant member into its operative position, I employ a cord or the like s eX- tending from the eye r to some point where it may be moved by the hand or foot of the operator.

The exact form herein illustrated of the resonant body is not an essential feature of the invention, and neither is the mode illustrated of mounting the resonant member, as the spirit of the invention is found in any construction of sound-producing member adapted to produce sounds when acted on by a blast and mounted upon or adjacent to a blast pipe, in such manner that it may be moved into or out of sound-producing relation with the blast issuing therefrom so as to produce a sound or to become silent, and any device answering to these terms is within the scope of my invention.

1. A whistle or horn comprising an opencnded tube, and a hollow chamber or bell having an opening in a wall thereof, said chamber being movably connected to said tube in such manner as to partially close the end of the tube and bring its opening sulgstantially in line with a side wall of the tu e.

2. A whistle or horn comprising a tube or conduit, and a substantially cylindrical resonant chamber pivoted to said tube and having an opening in a side thereof, said resonant chamber being so movable as to place its opening in a plane parallel with the direction of a blast issuing from the tube, and the wall at one side of such opening across the blast.

3. A whistle or horn, comprising a resonant chamber generally cylindrical in shape but distorted at one side to form a square corner, the side wall of the chamber having an opening at one side of such corner and a tube to which said chamber is pivoted and with respect to which it is movable so as to place the closed wall of said corner across the end of said tube, except for a narrow slit, and the opening in such position that a blast issuing from such slit may blow across it,

et. A horn comprising a blast conduit, and a resonant hollow member having an opening in a side thereof, said member being mounted upon said conduit movably with respect thereto so as to place the said opening in such a position that a blast issuing from the conduit may cross the opening, to produce sound vibration in the resonant chamber, the wall of the member at one side of the opening being arranged to restrict the outlet of the conduit when in this position, and movable also into such position that the opening is removed from the path of the blast.

A horn comprising a conduit through which a blast is caused to iiow, and a hollow resonant member having a generally cylindrical form and provided with an opening in its side, the member being connected to said conduit with its aXis perpendicular to the same, and movable with respect to said conduit so as to narrow the discharge outlet thereof and place its opening where the blast issuing from such outlet may cross it, and movable also to leave the conduit unobstructed, and remove the opening from the influence of the blast.

6. A horn comprising a conduit, a resonator mounted upon said conduit so as to move across and to one side of the end thereof respectively, said resonator having a Copies of this patent may be obtained for wall which, when moved across the conduit, reduces the outlet thereof to a relatively narrow slit, and said resonator having an opening in its side so arranged that the blast issuing from such slit may cross it and strike the edge thereof.

In testimony whereof I have affixed my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

ELIAS lV. SCHURMAN. Vitnesses SOLOMON A. CAMPBELL, P. IV. PEZZETTI.

five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. C. 

